Polishing processes such as planarization are used in many different industries. For example, conventional semiconductor device fabrication requires many polishing processes. Similarly, etching and cleaning are common process steps in semiconductor industry. In conventional processes, etching, cleaning, and polishing are performed using different equipment and processes, which increases process costs.
Due to continuous scaling of semiconductor devices, new materials and structural features are continuously introduced. Further, feature dimensions are being reduced continuously requiring improved process sensitivity while reducing process margin/tolerances. For example, this requires improved etch selectivity while reducing etch errors. Conventional polishing processes are mechanical processes, which are very sensitive to design/layout and position along the wafer. Consequently, there is a constant need to improve etching, cleaning, and polishing processes while reducing production costs.